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PROCEEDINGB 



OF A 



CONVENTION 

OF 



Delegates from the ditizens of 



m'Mm'^mAmA^ 



Opposed to Executive Usurpation and Abuse, 



WHICH ASSEMBLED AT HARRISBURG, 
May 27, 1834. 






HARRISBURG : 

PHIXTED BT HENRT K, 8TR0W0- 
1834. 



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PROCEEDINGS. 



The Convention of Delegates from the Citizens of 
Pennsylvania, opposed to Executive usurpation and 
abuse, assembled in the court-house in Harrisburg, 
on Tuesday, May 27, 1834. 

The convention was temporarily organised by cal- 
ling Henry Frick of Northumberland, to the chair, 
and appointing Neville B. Craig of Allegheny and 
George Harrison of Bucks, Secretaries. 

The following Delegates appeared and answered 

to their names: 

Adams. 
Jacob CassaU, James Wilson, James McSheriy, Thadeus 
Stevens, R. G. Harper, James Renshaw. 

Alleghetiy. 
Thomas Bakewell, Joseph PaUerson, George Darsie, Thos. 
Williams, Neville B. Craig, Samuel Church. 

Bedford. 
George Denig, James M. Russell, Alexander King, John 
A. M'Co), Daniel Washabaugh. 

BerJcs, 
Peter Addams, John Beitenman, John Kauchcr, John Heiner = 

Beaver. 

Smith Cunningham, William B. Clark. 

Bradford. 
James P. Bull, Isaac Myer. 

BucJcs. 
Joseph Hough, James Worth, Joshua Barker, Wm. Green, 
Samuel Carey, Mathias Morris, George Harrison, Anthony Tay- 
or, James Kelly, C. N. Taylor. 

Butler. 
Robert Cunningham, Alfred Gilmore. 

Chester. 
William Darlington, John D. Steele, C A. Buckley, Charles 
Brooke, John H. Bradley, Joseph Whitakgr, JMordecai Lee, 
Samuel Irwin, M. Stanley, Benjamin Griffith. 



Columbia. 
Cicorge A. Frick, L. G. Bancroft, Joseph Paxtoii, Williara G, 
Hurley. 

Centre 4' Clearfield. 
John Foster, Wilharn Houston, James Irwin. John Blanchard, 
Jas. Potter, S. M'Cormick. 

Craivford. 
John B. Wallace, Henry C. Bosler, John Dick. 

Cumhcrland. 
John Reed, Samuel M'Keehan, G. W. VVoodburn, Gabriel 
Hcistcr, Jacob Ritncr, James H. Devor. 

Dauphin. 
Henry K. Strong, David Krause, John Cameron, George Fish- 
er, Henry ShuLart, Martin Kendig, VVm. H. Doll, Benjamin 
Jordan, Richard T. Leech, Joseph Moody James Simonlon, J. 
Porter. 

Dclaicarc. 
Thomas Smith, Wm. Eyre, jr. 

Erie. 
Thomas H, Sill, George A. Elliot, John Vincent. 

Fraiiklin. 
Thos. G. M'Culloh, Thos. Chambers, John F. Denny, Andrew 
Thomson, Frederick Boyer, John M'Farland. 

Huntingdon. 
John Stewart, J. M. Bell, J. Geo. Miles, D. McMurlrie, Jr. 
John Williamson, Henry L. M'Connell. 

Juniata. 
Ale.x. Patterson, James Mathers. 

Indiana. 
James Taylor. 

Lancaster. 
George Louis Mayer, Wm. Wright, Samuel Grosh, Joseph 
Konigmacher, James Porter, John F. Long, James Hopkins, Sam- 
uel O. Jacobs, Edward Parker, Jacob Kirk, Gabriel Davis, Jacob 
Huber, Thomas G. Henderson, Benj. Mellinger. 

Luzerne. 
Sharp D. Lewis, Charles Dorrancc, Hezekiah Parsons, Au- 
ning O. Chahoon, 

Lycoming, Potter Sf MKean. 
A. Davidson, John J*. Schuyler, Wm. Wilson, Rob. C. Hall 

Lehigh. 
Matthew Sellridgc, S. Balliot. 

Mercer. 
S. C. Tail, Robert M'Cormick. 



iMifflln. 
Richard Miles, Wm. Palton, Wm. Cummins, John J. M'Coy. 

l\[o7itgovicri/. 
Richard B. Jones, Thomas M. Jolly, John Freedley, George 
Richards, George VV. R,oberls, Joseph Ilunsicker, 
Northampton, Pike 4" Wayne. 
George Weber, Peier S. JMichler, James W. Chapman, John 
Jordon, jr. Evan Rees, J. Jenkins Ross. 

Northumberland. 
Henry Frick, John B. Boyd, Andrew M'Reynolds, John Vin- 
cent, James Pollock, William A. Lloyd. 

Fhiladelphia City. 
John Sergeant, Joseph R. Ingersoll, John M. Scott, John S. 
Riddle, Joseph M'llvaine, Josiah Randall, J. Price Wetherill, 
James Crissy, Frederick Fraley, Elihu Chauncey, Charles W. 
Churchman, Edward Olmsted, Alexander Ferguson, J. Schole- 
tield, James Hutchinson, Nathan Sargent, W. M. Meredith. 

Philadelphia County. 
Bernard M'Creedy, William Wagner, Nath'l C. Foster, Geo. 
P. Little, William Fitler, Thomas Rotch, William Wister, George 
K. Budd, David Woelpper, Bela Badger, Andrew Young, John 
Lentz, Henry C, Corbit, John Britton, Alexunder Quinton, Mi- 
chael Day, J. Simon Cohen, Richard Coe. 

Perry. 
John Rice, A. C. Harding, R. R. Guthrie, P. Ritner. 

Schuylkill, 
Christopher Loeser, Geo. N. Eckert, Michael Graeff, Andrew 
Russell. 

Susquehanna. 
Henry Drinker, William Jessup. 

Union. 
Simon ShafTer, William Cameron, Ner Middleswarlh, George 
Weirick, William L. Harris, Robert P. Maclay. 

Venango 6f Warren, 
William Raymond, Andrew Bowman. 

Washington. 
Joseph Lawrence, John H. Ewing. 

York. 
Calvin Mason, AdamGlosbrenner, Frederick Eichelberger, Wm. 
MTlvainc, Philip Smyser, Charles Bishop, Robert Nebinger, Wm. 
Diven, A. J. Glossbrenner. 

The following committee was then chosen to noii.inate the officers of the 
Convention. 

Nathaniel C. Forster, Jos. ^Jcllvaine, John S. Riddle, David 



6 

Woelj)i)er, Geo. Louis Mayer, Thomas Smitli, John D. Sled, 
Uichard 13. Jones, Josejih Hough, P. S. Michler, Christopher 
Leoser, Peter Addams, Geo. Fisher, Calvin Mason, Jacob Cas- 
sat, Samuel McKeehaii, James Potter, Ilezekiah Parsons, Asher 
Davidson, Henry Drinker, Geo. Dcnig, James Taylor, John H. 
Ewing, Joseph Patterson, Robert Cunningham, Wra .B. Clark, 
Geo. A. Elliott. 

Adjourned to 3. o'clock, P. M. 

Tuesday, May 27, 1834. 
The Convention met at three o'clock according to adjournment. 

Mr. Fisher, from the committee for that purpose, reported the 
following officers, which were unanimously elected. 

President^ 

JOSEPH LAWRENCE of Washington county. 
Vice Presidents^ 

Neu MiDDLESAVAKTii of Union; 
HexNry Feick, Northumberland ; 
John Vincent, Erie ; 
James M'Siierry, Adams ; 
Geokge fLvRKisoN, Bucks ; 
Fred'k Eichelberger, York , 
Neville B. Chaig, Allegheny ; 
Samuel M'Keehan, Cumberland ; 
J. M. Russell, Bedford ; 
Samuel Grosii, Lancaster ; 
Peter Addams, Berks ; 
David Woelpper, Philadelphia. 

Secretaries. 

John WilUamson of Huntingdon; 
Par id Krause, Dauphin ; 
Thomas M. Jolly, Montgomery ; 
William Jessup, Susquehanna ; 
Edward Olmsted, Philadelphia ; 
ISainucl C. Tail, Mercer. 



On motion of Mr. Morris of Bucks, the following resolution wat 
agreed to ; 

lieaolved, That tlie liules of the House of Reprcseritalives of tliis State be 
aJoi)ted for tlie government of this Convention. 



On motion of Mr, Reed of Cumberland, il was 
Resolved, That a committepof seven persons be appoinfeJ to prepare an Ad- 
drees to the People of Pennsylvania. T he chair appointed the following' Com- 
mittee, viz: John Reed, Joseph Mcllvainc, Henry I,. M'Connell, T. G. M'Cui- 
loh, Thomas H. Sill, John K. Ewing and Mathias Morris. 

Reaolved, That a committee of eight be appointed to prepare resolutions ex- 
pressive of the sense of this Convention in relation to public afiairs. 1 he chair 
appointed the following, viz : John Sergeant, Thadeus Stevens, James P. Bull, 
James Hopkins, Wm. M'llvaine, James Taylor, George Weber, and John F. 

Denny. 

Resolved, That a committee of seven be appointed to prepare a Memorial to 
Congress for redress of grievances. The chair appointed the following viz: 
Joseph Patterson, William Darlington, Joseph R. Ingersoll, John B. Wallace, 
James Wilson, A. C. Harding, and Alexander King. 

Mr. J. Sergeant submilted the following resolution : 
Resolved,^ That the refusal of the President of the United States to re- 
ceive Committees of our fellow citizens, who respectfully waited upon him 
from various quarters, to'offer to him information upon the effect of his mea- 
sures, and to request that his policy might be changed, so as to relieve the coun- 
try from the severe distress he had brought upon it, was as contrary to true wis- 
dom, as it was to the regard that is due to the rights of the citizens, and equal- 
ly betrays a weak mind and a despotic temper, already surrendered to the domin- 
ion of flatterers, and unable to bear the plain language of Republican simplicity 
and truth.' 

The resolution was ably advocated by Mr. Sergeant, after which 
it was on motion of Mr. Reed of Cumberland, referred to the com- 
mittee of Resolutions. 

Adjourned to meet at 9 o'clock to-morrow. 

May 28. 

Convention met at 9 a'clock A. M. 

Mr. Ingersoll, from the commilee for that purpose, reported a 
memorial to Congress which was read, and on motion was ordered 
to be printed and a copy furnished to each member. 

The names of members were then called, after which the Con^ 
vention adjourned. 

3 o'clock P. M. Convention met and on motion adjourned to 
meet at 10 o'clock, A. M. to-morrow. 

May 29. 
Convention met at 10 o'clock A. M. 
Mr. Sergeant from the committee on resolutions reported the 
following: 

Resolved, That it is the duty and the right of the citizens freely,' to express 
their opinions, upon the conduct of those entrusted with power, and in times of 
distress and suffering and danger, brought on by the acts of any department of 
the government, it is their right and their duty, by all constitutional means, to 
endeavor to correct the abuses that exist, and to prevent the mischiefs that are 
threatened ; and for that purpose to unite their efforts, so that when the day of 
appealing to the ballot box shall come, the appeal may not be made in vain. 



8 

Resolved, Tliat the numbers, zoal and harmony of the members ol' this Con- 
vention, and the patriotic Pi)irit which has peivaded its dehberations and its acts, 
have afforded us the most sincere satisfaction ; and together with the fact, that 
so many of those who compose it, were but recen'.ly of the party which sup- 
ports the Executive, furnish the most convincing evidence that a change has ta- 
ken place in Pennsylvania ; that the love of country and attachment to the 
Constitution has prevailed over party attachment and devotion to a man; and 
that at the next elections, this patriotic State will be found on the side of the 
Constitution and the laws, associated with her sisters, Virginia and New York, 
and with them contributing to the success of the great cause of constitutional 
freedom. - 

Resolved, That in the next elections for Congress and the Legislature, it be 
deemed an indispensable qualification of candidates, that they arc heartily op- 
posed to Executive usurpation, truly attached to the representative system as es- 
tablished by the Constitution, and ready to support the rightful authority of 
both Houses of Congress, against the encroachments, menaces and assaults of 
the Executive. ' 

Resolved, That it be earnestly recommended to our fellow citizens, through- 
out the commonwealth, along with zeal and energy in the great and good cause, 
to cultivate a spirit of conciliation and mutual respect; and that it be further 
earnestly recommended to them, to distinguish with their high approbation and 
confidence, every member of Congress or of the Legislature, by whatever 
name he may have been chosen, who in his station has faithfully resisted Execu- 
tive usurpation and abuse, and firmly maintained the rights of the peopled 

Resolved, That it be also earnestly recommended to our fellow citizens in 
their respective districts and counties, to adopt all such measures as may be cal- 
culated to ensure success — to establish committees of correspondence, and 
to maintain a communication with each other, for mutual encouragement, in- 
formation and support, throughout the Stated 

Resolved, That in removing from office William J. Duane, Esq. late Secre- 
tary of the Treasury, because in the exercise of a power committed to him by 
law, he would not violate his judgment and his conscience, and thereby conform 
his conduct to the will of the President; in appointing another to succeed him, 
for no other reason but because he would conform to his will ; and in assuming 
the responsibihty of doing himself, what was entrusted by law to the discretion 
of the Secretary of the Treasury alone, the President was guilty of an usurpa- 
tion and abuse of power, and a violation of the Constitution and the laws. 

Resolved, That in taking these steps a few weeks before the meeting of a 
new Congress, recently elected by the people, ard clothed with the authority of 
the people, so that he might thereby be enabled to interpose his veto power, and 
frustrate the intentions of the representatives of the people, unless two thirds of 
both houses should concur — he was guilty of a violent encroachment upon the 
rights of the people, as they were intended to be secured by the Constitution. 

Resolved, That in assigning as a reason for this encroachment, that a major- 
ity in Congress might be, and probably would be, bribed or corrupted, he was 
guilty of an unwarrantable assault upon the character of the representatives 
of the people, an unjust and fatal disparagement of the representative system, 
and a destructive outrage upon the whole scheme of our government ; amount- 
ing in fact, to an assertion, that there was no virtue but in the government of a 
single man, or what is properly denominated an absolute despotism. 

Resolved, That by these means, he has unlawfully seized upon, and still holds 
in his own custody and power, the whole treasure of the U. States, having thus 
removed it from the place where it was deposited by law, and w'iere it was declared 
by Congress, and known i'y the people, to be secure, and where, too, it was sub- 
ject to the power of the leprescntativcsof the people, into places of his own se- 
lection, of whose sufficiency there is no evidence, and where it is as much be- 
yond the proper control of Congress as the treasury of tho General Post Office, 



anJ may, t'orauglit we know, be equally nli^5manaQ;e(1, wasted, or liestoweii, for 
corrupt purposes, upon favorites and partisans. 

Resolved, That the refusal of tlie Secretary of tlie Treasury to restore the 
public monies to the place of their lawful depositc, after one House of Congress 
has declared the reasons for removal to be insufficient, is contrary to the plain 
spirit and meaning of an Act of Congress, is a manifest disregard of law, aiul 
justly awakens a suspicion that the public monies have been squandered or lost, 
and therefore cannot be restored — a suspicion strongly supported by the notorious 
fact, that secret and contingent drafts were drawn by the Secretary of the Trea- 
sury, to the amount of millions, not for any service of the Government, but for 
the service of selected Banks (in one of which he was himself a. stockholder) 
and to supply their wants, and which suspicion cannot and ought not to 
slumber, until the people's money is again publicly counted down in the sight of 
Congress and the people, at the place where they declared it to be secure. 

Resolved, That in withholding from the Senate for now almost six months of 
tlieir session, the nomination of the Secretary of the Treasury, who was the in- 
fitrnment of his unlawful will, so that the Senate might have no opportunity of 
acting upon his appointment, the President has been guilty of a gross disregard 
of the constitutional rights of that body, a violation of the true meaning of the 
Constitution, and a dangerous indulgence of an arbitrary spirit wLLch respects 
neither law nor right, and has no deference whatever for theco-ordiaatc branche"- 
of the Government. 

Resolved, That in these acts of the Executive Government of the United 
States, which have disordered the currency, destroyed confidence, and produced 
universal and increasing distrust and distress, are to be found the plain and ade- 
quate cause of that unhappy change, by which a nation prosperous, and happy, 
and blessed by a gracious Providence with the means of continued prosperity & 
happiness, has been plunged into embarrassment and suffering, for no discernablc 
reason, but because such is the will of a single man, who ought to be their ser- 
vant, but acts as if he v^'as their master. 

Resolved, That the acts of usurpation and abuse, already noticed, bad as 
they are in themselves, are far transcended by the alarming and unconstitutional 
doctrines deliberately put forth by the President in the paper styled a Protest, in 
which there is a declared assumption of Executive power, in direct opposition to 
the theory of our Government, and the literal provisions of the Constitution. 

Resolved, That ours is a Government of the people, and that all public officers 
are mere organs of the people, responsible to them, and to the laws which they 
enact, and not to the President, who is himself an agent, and not a ruler. 

Resolved, That the claim of the President, which denies to Congress the 
power to place the people's money in the hands of officers whose appointment 
would not devolve upon him, is adverse to the 2d section of the 2d article of the 
Constitution, which provides that Congressman vest the appointmentof certain 
Officers in other hands than the President's. 

Resolved, That the 8th section of the 1st article of the Constitution renders 
all the officers and departments of the Government subordinate to the people by 
their representatives in Congress, thereby denying the povvjer claimed by the 
President in his Protest, which would render him superior to all the Departments 
of the Government, and to the people themselves. 

Resolved, That if these assumptions, thus boldly put forth by the President, 
under the influence of evil passions, and evil counsellors, should be unhappily 
sanctioned by the people, an entire and radical revolution will have been affected 
in the form of our government, the whole of if a powers being thereby deposited 
in the hands of the President alone. 

Resolved, That such a sanction of the poweris claimed by the President will 
lead directly to the destruction of our liberties and the establishment of a despo- 
tism. 

B 



10 

Resolved, That we cannot sufficiently express our gratitude to the majority 
in the Senate of the United States for the patriotic energy and unsurpassed 
talents with which they have maintained the cause of the Constitution, and 
withstood the assaults upon their Constitutional rights and privileges, and espe- 
cially for the noble firmness with which they exposed the usurpation and abuse 
of power committed by the Executive in seizing upon the public purse ; hurled 
back the disrespectful and unconstitutional attack upon their character and privi- 
leges in the unprecedented paper called a protest, without suffering it to remain 
to defile their proceedings; rejected the Executive commentary upon that un- 
warranted paper, without attempting to solve the perplexing question, whether 
it was an explanation, or whether it was a retraction, which has so much puz- 
zled the supporters of Executive pretensions; and for the dignified rebuke 
conveyed in their answer to the insulting message which accompanied the 
re-nomination of the so styled Government Directors of the Bank of the Uni- 
ted States, as well as for the second and more decided rejection of the nomina- 
ation thus attempted to be forced upon them, in contemptuous violation of their 
clearest rights. 

Resolved, That our gratitude is also due to the majority in the Senate of the 
United States, for giving a ready ear and the most prompt attention to the me- 
morials of our fellow citizens, and to those entrusted with their conveyance and 
care, listening to their complaints, discussing their reasons, and doing what they 
could to redress the grievances complained of, & this too, when the doors of the 
Executive mansion were peremptorily closed against the delegates of the memo- 
morialists, and those delegates sternly refused admission to the presence of the 
President, to lay before him the representations of the people suffering under 
his rash, ill advised and unconstitutional interference with the currency, and, if 
possible, by means of correct information, te turn him from the destructive policy 
he was pursuing. 

Resolved, That one of the principal means employed to accumulate power 
in the hands of the Executive, whereby he has been emboldened 'thus to seize 
upon the public purse, tamper with the currency, to introduce disorder and dis- 
tress mto all the operations of business, to msult and menace the Senate, and to at- 
tempt to assume to himself all the powers of government,is to be found in the pos- 
session of the appointing power, so exercised that the whole body of officers,high 
and low, throughout the U. States, should be made to feel their depenc'ence upon 
him, and upon him alone, and all who sought for office, to look to him alone, and 
that both should be instructed, that their tenure and their hopes were to be main- 
tained only by active subserviency to his will, as paramount to every other consid- 
eration, even that of duty, and the public welfare, and thus a body be estaWished, 
entirely devoted to his purposes, whatever they might be. 

Resolved, That the only corrective of this abuse of the appointing power of 
the President, is to be found in the full use of the Constitutional control of the 
Senate over appointments, and that in our opinion, under the extraordinary cir- 
cumstances in which we are placed, this control ought to be exerted and apphed 
to the whole extent of its Constitutional limits ; and particularly to every case 
where an appointment is made of a member of Congress, which may be suspect- 
ed to be, or even have the appearance of being,the reward of conforming his rep- 
resentative conduct to the will of the Executive rather than to the will and inter- 
ests of his constituents, or may have the effect of rescuing him from accountabil- 
ity to his constituents; and that in such exertion of their Constitutional control, 
by some signal example to chech a growing and alarming abuse, dangerous to 
our liberties, and destructive of the principle of Representative Government, the 
Senate wnll he supported and upheld by the people, and be acting according to 
the true spirrtof the Constitution. 

Resolved,^\\&i the Senate is now the refuge of Constitutional freedom, where 
it must be preserved and protected until the people shall have the opportunity of 
extending to it their own protection by the ballot box, (as the recent elections in 



11 

Virginia and New York and the demonstrations in Pennsylvania, assure us that 
they will do,) and while we view with admiration the constancy and ability 
which have so strikingly distinguished the conduct of the majority of that body, 
we earnestly conjure them to continue to watch and to resist the efforts of unjust 
power, in every shape it may assume, and to advise and approve of nothing which 
may have a tendency to advance its schemes or consolidate its strength. ^ 

Resolved, That we appreciate, with heartfelt gratitude, the patriotic firmness 
of the minority in the House of Representatives of the United States, and the 
distinguished ability with which, under every discouragement, they have exerted 
all their powers to maintain the Constitution and the true policy of the country; 
they have been voted down by determined majorities, and sometimes cut otf from 
discussion by the previous question, but the light they shed upon the great topics 
of debate, has spread through the Union, and is now rapidly making its way to 
the minds of their countrymen, whence it will return to the Representative 
Chamber, and finally triumph over the blindness of party attachment. 

Resolved, That with the expression of our gratitude to the patriotic minority 
in the House of Representatives, we would encourage them to persevere, assured, 
that whatever may be the strength of the majority in the House, the great ma- 
jority of the nation is already with them, and tJiat is a majority that will make 
itself heard. 

Resolved, That instead of retrenchment, economy and reform, there has been 
an extravagant and unaccountable increase of expenditure, until the sum ex- 
pended by the government has amounted to no less a sum than twenty-two 
millions of dollars within the last year, independently of what was applied to 
the payment of the pubhc debt— at the same time offices have been multi- 
plied to increase the number of Executive favorites, and the money of the people 
has been lavishly bestowed in salaries and rewards and extra allowances. 

Resolved^ That the refusal of the President to receive committees of our 
fellow citizens, who respectfully waited upon him from various parts of the Uni- 
ted States, to offer to him information upon the effect of his measures, and to 
request that his policy might be changed, so as to relieve the Country from the 
severe distress he had brought upon it, was as contrary to true wisdom, as it was 
to the regard that is due to the rights of the citizens, and equally betrays a weak 
mind and a despotic temper, already surrendered to the dominion of flatterers, 
and unable to bear the plain language of repubUcan simplicity and truth. 

Which resolutions, except the third, were unanimously adopt- 
ed. The third resolution was adopted, Mr. Bull of Bradford, 
Mr. Drinker of Susquehanna, and Mr. Frick of Northumberland, 
alone voting against its passage, giving as their reason that they 
deemed it inexpedient, but slating also that they had no objection 
to the principles it contains. 

Mr. Reed from the committee to prepare an address to the 
People of Pennsylvania, reported the following, which was read 
by Mr. J. M'llvaine, and unanimously adopted. 

ADDRESS TO THE PEOPLE OF PENNSYLVANIA. 

A CONVENTION of delegates from the several counties 
of Pennsylvania, representing those of their fellow-citizens who 
disapprove the recent measures of the National Executive, and 
who attribute to those measures the excitement, alarm and pe- 
"'iniaiv distress, now pervading the country, have assembled and 



12 

dolibcraleu upon the inlciesling questions submitted to tlieir con- 
sideratioii. From the commencement of" their session to Us close, 
the idea has been constantly present to their minds, that the occa- 
sion and the objects wliich called them together, areof unspeaka- 
ble iin[)ortaiice to the freedom and happiness of their common 
country. They believe, that at no former crisis, since the Whigs 
of the Revolution uttered their defiance of arbitrary power, and 
staked life and fortune and sacred honor upon the issue, has the 
call been so peremptory upon all those who love their country, 
whatever may be the modihcaiion of their republican creed, or 
whatever their party name, to rise up in defence of the first prin- 
ciples of the government, and, by united force and hearty co-ope- 
ration, to restore the constitution and the law to their just suprem- 
acy over the rulers of the land. 

The more we have compared sentiments with each other, the 
more intense and deep-seated has this feeling become. Under its 
guidance we have adopted a series of resolutions, to which we 
respectfully invite the candid attention of the citizens of Pennsyl- 
vania, and of the whole American people. * To its paramount in- 
fluence we attribute the uninterrupted harmony which has marked 
the proceedings of a Convention, belonging to no party in the 
politics of the state, but composed of individuals from almost 
every party, who, without yielding their own distinctive opinions, 
are yet prompt at the call of common danger, and ready to con- 
tend at the ballot box, side by side, for the injured principles of 
the consti'.ution, and for their common rights as citizens of a free 
republic. *' To extend this feeling more widely through the state, 
and to produce a corresponding harmony of action upon the great 
national questions now at issue, is the sole object of this brief 
Address. If our efforts be successful, the struggle for power be- 
tween the people on the one hand, and their elected servant on 
ihe other, can no longer be doubtful : and a lesson will be taught, 
so useful to the cause of rational freedom, as to entitle this gen- 
eration to the gratitude of all succeeding ages. 

Have the Convention overrated the importance of the present 
crisis? Is it not true that our community is at this moment ex- 
cited and alarmed beyond all former example — that the perma- 
nency of the Union, and the stability of republican institutions, 
have become subjects of fear and reasonable doubt, and that for 
such doubts and fears, abundant cause is furnished by the ruinous 
career of the national executive ? Let the people judge for them- 
selves, by reference to facts, with which all are familiar, and 
which no one will deny. Let them examine the doctrines assert- 
ed by the President in reference to his own powers, and say whe- 
ther he docs not claim the whole sovereignty of the nation and 
disregard all the checks which the constitution has provided 
against arbitrary authority. Let them observe among the fearful 
ofneng of the times, how these doctrines arc propagated by every 



13 

means which an extended influence over the public press, and an 
unlimited command of the public treasure, have placed within his 
reach — how principles inconsistent with all rational liberty are 
openly proclaimed by his blinded and corrupt adherents, in the 
name of freedom, and under the guise of democracy. Lci tliem 
mark how the power of the national government has been brought 
to bear upon the independence of the state sovereignties ; and 
referring to their own commonwealth for an example, at once re- 
cent and impressive, account for the vacillations of its executive 
and its legislature, under the attractive influence existing at Wash- 
ington. Let tliem study the history and investigate the accounts 
of the general post-office, and they cannot fail to perceive that 
the good of the people and the latvof the land have been con- 
temptuously set aside by this administration — that a department 
created for general covenience, has become a mere engine of party 
operations, its revenues squandered among hungry partisans, arid 
its value as a vehicle of sound information utterly destroyed. Let 
them number, if they can, the armies of office holders and office 
seekers who swarm through the country, and whose only rule of 
action and opinion is the command of their chief ; and let them 
observe, how the number and compensation of officers has been 
increased, and these officers arrayed like a standing army, at ail 
our elections, with the approbation of him who, while the oath of 
office was yet warm upon his lips, declared, that to reduce the ex- 
penses of government, and prevent the interference of public offi- 
cers with the freedom of elections, should be cordial objects of 
his administration. Let them remember that a large portion of 
the house of representatives, mfluenced by the fear of punishi 
ment or the hope of reward, and surrendering their freedom of 
thought and action, have tamely passed under the yoke of the 
executive ; and that, but for the patriotic stand which the Senate 
has made in the citadel of the constitution, this famed republic, 
the beacon light by which all other nations have steered in pursuit 
of freedom, would now be a monarchy in every thing but name. 

That the pretensions of President Jackson, if admitted by the 
Senate and the People, as they have already been by tlie House 
of Representatives, would render this government a monarchy 
and not a republic, is evident from the paper which he presented 
to the Senate as an exposition of the authority claimed by the 
President. In that singular document, he adopts as a basis the 
powers exercised by the king of Great Britain, when the royal 
prerogative was most widely extended ; and, so far from recogni- 
zing the principle of our constitution, that all powers not granted 
by that instrument are to be regarded as withholden, he claims 
every attribute of sovereignty not expressly prohibited by the let- 
ter of the constitution. Let this claim be admitted, and it will 
be useless for Congress to enact laws, or for the judiciary to de- 
cide upon their coublruciion. The president will understand 



14 

them as lie pleases : he will set them aside if they interfere with 
his plans — and, when some excuse for the disregard of his official 
oath is required by an insulted people, those immaculate advisers, 
who surround the throne, will find it in his zeal for the mainten- 
ance of public morality, by precept at least, if not by example. 

The monarchial feelings of Gen. Jackson will be found to gov- 
ern his practice in its most minute details. Like the weak kings, 
of whom history furnishes too many examples, we find him sur- 
rounded by a few interested favorites, who, by flattering his vanity, 
and stimulating his passions, maintain exclusive possession of the 
royal ear. Thro' the barriers thus created, the language of truth 
cannot pass, nor can his constitutional advisers expect to enter, un- 
less upon condition of entire subserviency. Nay, the very delegates 
of the people of the United States, instructed to bear to the presi- 
dent a statement of their grievances, have either been refused ad- 
mission into the palace of thei<" Cscsar, or, when admitted, have 
been denied the opportunity of making known their views. 

Surely the facts to which we have thus briefly adverted, and 
which our limits forbid us to present in detail, would afford a suffi- 
cient and satisfactory explanation of all the alarm which exists in 
the country. Instead of being surprised at the universal agitation 
of the public mind, while tyranny and corruption thus walk naked 
in the light of day, we should wonder rather at the patience and 
forbearance of the American people. And yet their causes of 
complaint go far beyond a mere mal-admiaistration of the general 
government. For the first time in the history of this country, the 
power of the executive ha3 been so exerted as to interfere with 
the business and ruin the prospects of private individuals. The 
currency has been deranged, produce depreciated, labor deprived 
of its wonted employment, commerce and manufactures paralyzed 
— and this not by the regular legislation of the representatives of 
the people, but by the act of one man, who, in his rage for con- 
quest, has set himself above the people and the law. Not sat- 
isfied with warfare upon co ordinate departments of the govern- 
ment, he has commenced hostilities against the credit and currency 
of the country, by the sudden and unwarranted removal of the 
public deposits from the Bank of the United States. To this out- 
rage upon rights secured by lavv--to the spirit in which it origin- 
ated and the manner of its execution, and more especially to the 
total insecurity in which it has left the public treasure, and the 
schemes for flooding the country with worthless paper which 
sprung up simultaneously with the removal of the deposits, are to 
be attributed the unexampled pressure which all classes feel in 
their pecuniary affairs. By this act of the President, a wound 
was given to public confidence, which years will probably be insuf- 
ficient to heal. In a country like ours, where capital is small, and 
enterprise unlimited, industry must be crippled whenever credit is 
shaken. The credit of our country, has not only been tshaken, but 



15 

almost destroyed by the conduct of the administration; and the con- 
sequences are what the most ordinary understanding might easily 
have foreseen, that a people who one year ago were prosperous in 
a pre-eminent degree, are now plunged in distress, with tlie nloomy 
prospect of almost universal insolvency. As this cause concurs, 
with a probable necessity of windmg up the affairs of the national 
bank, by which forty millions of dollars must be withdrawn from 
active employment in the business of individuals, il'fully explains 
all the embarrassments of which the people have complained in 
their memorials to Congress, and of which no human foresight 
can perceive llieir termination. 

If we look first at the effects of tliis measure upon tlie com- 
merce, industry and happiness of the country, and llien refer to 
the reasons by which the president professes to be governed, we 
shall be struck with surprise at the total insignificance of the 
one in comparison with the other. And we cannot but wonder at 
the reckless audacity which could hazard so many interests, and 
destroy so much property, in order to accomplish so little of public or 
private good. It is true, he puts in the foreground his extreme tenderi 
ness for the morals of the people, and mourns over the lUeged cor- 
luptions of the bank, as striking at the foundations of civil liberty. 
But why limit the operation of these feelings to the single example 
of the Bank of the United States? Why not restrain iiis own im- 
mediate officers, the friends of his bosom, and the constant asso- 
ciates of his councils, from influencing elections by bribery and 
force, and from the wanton expenditure of public money, in order 
to secure the succession to a candidate of their own. Why such 
long sufi'ering with the abuses, and corruption, and total insolven- 
cy of the post office department; and why his patronage of men 
and presses, whose daily practice sets truth and morality equally at 
defiance ? The answei- is obvious from the facts of the case. His 
new-born zeal for public morals and civil liberty is a single edged 
sword, harmless to his friends, and formidable only to those whom 
he considers his enemies ; — and the probability is that if the 
Bank of the United States had accepted his offer to become an 
ally in his war against the constitution and the people, the Presi- 
dent would have discovered far stronger reasons for prolonging 
its existence, than he has been able to give for its condemnation 
and destruction. • 

In the preparation of this address, many topics have occurred 
to us, which might profitably be discussed, as calculated to throw 
light upon the condition of the government, and the prospects of 
the country: but anxious to be brief, we have contented ourselves 
wjlh a reference to such prominent facts as may show the danger 
of our position, and the absolute neces!?ity of some vigorous effort 
on the part of the people. The question next arises, what shall 
the People of Pennsylvania do to restore the integrity of the 
constitution, and regain the lost happiness and repose of the com- 



16 

munity ? Let them dpnounce the ruinous policy of the present 
administration, by their votes at the next elections tor Congress 
and the Legislature. Let them take their stand, once more, on 
the side of justice, liberty and reason; and supported, as they 
will certainly be, by Virginia and New York, they will present a 
force which no possible combination among the partisans of the 
oppressor can successfully oppose. To piepare fur that election 
and to bring about an effective co-operation cm the part of all who 
disapprove the acts of Executive usurpation, has been the great 
object of this Convention. Thus far we have succeeded beyond 
our most sanguine hopes, and we part with the assurance that the 
jood work of conciliation here auspiciously begun, must go on and 
produce a rich harvest of good to our beloved country. We en- 
tertain no doubt, upon the evidence which surrounds us, that a 
large majority of the people of Pennsylvania agree with us in 
opinion upon the great national questions to which we have refer- 
red, and we believe that when our adversaries shall find all efforts 
to divide and distract us unavailing, they will retire from a contest 
which holds out to them no prospect but defeat. 



The following proceedings were presented by the chair, which 
were ordered to be inserted in the minutes of the Convention. 

At a meeting of the citizens of Westmoreland county, opposed to the usur- 
pations of the national Executive, held at the house of Abraham Horbach in 
the borough of Greensburgh, on Thursday, the 22d day of May, A. D. 1834, 
James Nichols, Esq. was called to the chair, and Col. James B. Oliver appointed 
Secretary. 

On motion, the following resolution was unanimously adopted: 

Resolved That William H. King and James Nichols, Esquiros, of the 
Borough of 'Oreensburg— Jesse Leppincot and Christopher Painter ot Mount- 
pleasant William 'f. Niccolls of Pleasant Unity, John Snodgrass of New 
Alexandria and Col. Noah Mendal of Ligonier,be a Committee to represent the 
views ofthis meeting to the Convention to convene at Harnsburg on the 27th 
instant, and that they be a standing Committee of correspondence for llie coun- 
ty of Westmoreland. ^ . 

JAMES NICHOLS, Chairman. 

At EST, T. J}. OLIVER, Secretanj. 



The Convention then adjourned, to meet at 3 o'clock. P 



M 



^i 



IT 



The Convention mot at 3 o'clock P. M. 

Mr. Ingersoll, from Ilie commiltee to prepare a Memorial to 
Conoressrveported the following, wliicii was unanimously adopted:. 



MEMORIAL TO CONGRESS. 

A numerous body of the citizens of Pennsylvania assembled at 
Uie seat of their Stale government, ask leave respectfully to offer 
iheir Memorial to the Senate and Houise of Representatives of the 
United States. In assembling together and adopting the present 
measure, they are ol)eying the instructions and [uttering the voice 
of their suffering fellow citizens of every section of this wide spread 
commonwealth. Out of twenty-six Congressional districts, twen- 
ly-five are represented in the convention. The fulness of the re- 
presentation may be judged of by the numbers of your memo- 
rialists, who have left their occupations and their homes at a mo- 
ment when, in consequence of the distress which pervades every 
part of the State, a departure from either is attended with peculiar 
inconvenience and embarrassment. They have yielded however 
to the commands of their friends and neighbours without regret 
for any personal sacrifices, and they have met together to confer 
upon the grievances which are endured, and to devise if possible 
• he means of alleviating them. Your honorable bodies are not 
now to learn the distressed condition of any portion of the coun- 
try. It is long since we have seen recorded in your journals the 
receipt of petitions from more than a hundred thousand citizens, 
all uniting in one mournful but unquestionable story of suspend- 
ed wages, lost credit, increasing wants and diminished means to 
supply them— which have left their deep and perhaps indelible 
impression in every portion of a heretofore prosperous and smi. 
ling land. These communications springing, as they have done 
from various quarters, and dictated by no concert or co-operation 
except that which flows spontaneously from a common state of ca- 
lamity, your memorialists have now the painful opportunity fully to 
confirm. They have brought together the disastrous tidings which 
have been collected in each distinct section of the commonv/ealth. 
They have opened to each other freely their swelling hearts, and 
they have sought in vain for one mitigating circumstance in pos- 
session or in prospect, for one exaggerated representation or dis- 
torted fact in the numerous exhibitions of deep felt suffering which 
have been made to Congress, and they have found only aggrava- 
tion in the conviction that the suffering has been altogether unne- 
cessary and unmerited. 

As Pennsylvanians, your memorialists contemplate with anguish - 
the neglect or destruction of unlimited resources, which are now 

C 



18 

worse than thrown away. The cherished policy of the state, con- 
sisting of an encouragement of her manufactures, has become im, 
practicable and delusive — for there is no longer a market for the 
sale of them, or a reasonable probability of being paid for them if 
they could be sold. The consequence is, that numerous esta- 
blishments of that description are actually closed, and others re- 
main in partial operation with crippled strength, performing but 
a fraction of their accustomed labor ; and struggling even in that 
feeble and imperfect condition, not in ihe belief that any return 
of profit can be realized, but clinging to the possibly delusive 
hope that infatuation itself must one day or other be brought to 
perceive and to abandon the error of its ways. 

Your memorialists do not mean to dwell for a moment upon the 
loss sustained by the proprietors, severe and afflicting as it is — 
unjustly and tyrannically as it has been decreed. They are able 
in many instances to stand up against the shock beyond the reach 
of utter ruin, and they are awaiting in such cases with becoming 
fortitude the return of better times. Pennsylvania happily rests 
upon resources which the rudest storm cannot in a moment sweep 
away. But your memorialists anxiously desire to communicate 
to your honorable bodies some portion of the feeling with which 
they are animated for a large class of laboring poor, whose daily 
bread depends upon the constancy of their employments and the 
certainty of their reward. In the city of Pittsburg and its im- 
mediate vicinity, two-thirds of a population of thirty thousand in- 
habitants owe their livelihood to manufactures. The suspension 
of the forge and the loom, which has now occurred, debars a 
large portion of this vast mass of human activity and strength 
from occupation and consequently from support ; and many of 
them must be cast out to starv'e, unless a Providence juster and 
more benignant than their rulers, protects them in their day of 
need. 

The staples of the commonwealth are without a market. Many 
of its once flourishing mines are in a great degree abandon- 
ed, and their miners are generally dispersed. Iron and cotton 
are no longer manufactured to the extent of more than iwo-thirds 
of their former produce. Lumber, if it sells at all, sells at great- 
ly diminished prices. Four out of five of the furnaces of an ex- 
tensive glass house at Kensington, are extinguished, and the fifth 
is kept in blast chiefly that the numerous apprentices may con- 
tinue to enjoy the means of instruction and beneficial exercise. 
If flour retams its price, it is owing to the additional calamity of 
its scarcity, in consequence of which the supply has been redu' 
ced in proportion to the demand. Turn where we will, your me* 
morialists perceive one universal sense of present or impending 
ruin depressing the energies and darkening the prospects of the 
citizen. 



19 

It is scarcely necessary at this time, to trace these deeply seat- 
ed and wide-spread mischiefs to their source. Under a solemn 
sense however of the responsibility which we owe to our consti- 
tuents, and to your honorable bodies, we do not hesitate to con- 
firm the imputation which has been so often communicated to 
Congress. Until a series of measures, on the part of the execu. 
tive of the Union, hostile to the best interests of Pennsylvania, 
were consummated by the last fatal blow aimed at the Bank of 
the United Slates, in the removal of the deposits to the custody 
of other institutions, all was prosperous and marked with plenty. 
The energies of our commonwealth and, as we believe, of the 
whole nation, became palsied from that hour. Your memorialists 
must therefore ascribe the suflerings to which they have adveited 
to that ill-advised measure consequent as it was upon, or connected 
with a system of hostility pursued towards the national bank. — 
The measure would probably have been sufficiently disastrous of 
itself; but when it bore every appearance of being united with 
a stern and unrelenting disposition to break down the barriers of 
the constitution, it was fraught with ruin to the brightest hopes 
of the nation. 

As other memorialists have been denied access to the executive, 
we cannot hope for succor from the quarter where we should 
otherwise most naturally have looked for it ; to which we have un- 
doubtingly ascribed the sufferings of our constituents. We 
therefore make our appeal directly to the Legislature. We ap- 
proach your honorable bodies with the deference and respect that 
are due from citizens to the representatives of the sovereignty of 
the American people, but with the firmness and independence 
of freemen, suffering under the weight of accumulated wrongs ; 
conscious of the purity of our motives and the righteousness of 
our cause. We are no less representatives of the people than 
yourselves ; selected indeed at the moment of suffering ; without 
the reproach of having in any degree contributed to it ; and un- 
happily without the means of extending relief. We approach you 
under the deepest conviction that it is fully within your power to 
redress the evils of our common country, and that it is your most 
sacred duty to put forth your arm and exercise that power. We 
rest upon the right which is guaranteed to us by the constitution 
to remonstrate against grievances, where complaint must lawfully 
be heard : to demand relief where alone it may be found. 

We believe, and so communicate to you, ihat the measure espe- 
cially complained of was in direct violation of the Constitution. 
That, that Constitution sives to the Executive no sort of control 
over the treasure of the nation. 'I'hat in assuming such unau- 
thorised control, an act has been committed of lawless usurpation, 
and high handed tyranny ; and that the co-ordinate branch of the 
government whose peculiar rights have been invaded, owes it to 
the nation and itself, effectually to vindicate them. We believe, 



20 

moreover, and we assert with the conlidencc which the consliia- 
tion and the cause inspire, that should the Legislature deny the 
redress we call for, and refuse to rescue the hiceding country 
from the effect of wounds thus wantonly inflicted, it will partici- 
pate in the exercise of arbitrary power. 

Could your memorialists discover for the act complained of, one 
feeble pretence in reason or in law, they would summon to their 
assistance the best consolations of patriotism, and patiently abide 
by the redress which the elective power may afford. But when 
they are referred to no authority, and are informed of no danger 
to justify or excuse the act ; when they are told that their con- 
stituents are to be involved in ruin — that the constitution of their 
country is to be invaded — that the best hopes of a happy people 
are to be blasted for the sake of ah experiment : and when 
that experiment has done its office and has proved itself to be 
altogether disastrous, they cannot, because they feel they ought 
not to, delay to throw themselves upon Congress for ample and 
immediate relief. Should it be delayed one single hour, distress 
will be greatly aggravated. Should Congress rise without spe- 
cific measures to carry the balm of consolation to the hearts of your 
desponding countrymen, the extent of the calamity it would be 
impossible to foretell. 

The representatives of Pennsylvania are especially called on 
to listen to the mournful voice of their suffering fellow citizens. 
They will not surely turn a deaf ear to the cry of supplication, 
speaking from so many thousand tongues. If they can, let them 
listen to the voice of warning. Tiiis convention is composed of 
two hundred and fifty members — of whom two hundred and eight 
have been in attendance. Of the whole number no less than 
seventy-five have heretofore been friends and supporters of the 
chief magistrate, whose acts have plunged the nation into deep 
calamity. They have deemed it due to their love of country to 
hold fast by the constitution through evil and tlirough good re- 
port ; and when a President, to whom they liave been ardently 
attached, forgets the tie — infinitely stronger than the strongest tic 
of personal devotion — that ought to bind him to his country and 
her laws, they deem it equally their duty to cast him off forever. 

Your memorialists are well assured that a single act of Con- 
gress, calculated to give renewed confidence in our institutions 
and to ensure to them respect and obedience hereafter, would 
at once arrest the progress of distress, and restore happiness to 
the people. 'I'lie violation of the constitution, like the sudden 
blast of death, lillcd the whole nution wiih dismay. 'JMie applica- 
tion by Congress of tlic remedy, which is c.oinpletely within their 
j)0wcr, will dispel with magic influence the shades which now en- 
velop the country. Your meniurialists confidently believe, that 
the restoratiuii of lli6 deposits to their only j)roper doposilory— or 
an uneqivocal act dijappruving of iheir removal — or an act re 



21 



chartering the Bank of the United Slates— or any act which shall 
effectually restrain the Executive from carrying on hostilities 
against the policy of Congress and the peace and welfare of the 
country, would afford relief;— the want of which is so sorely felt 
and the possession of which is so anxiously required. And they 
respectfully pray that one or all of such acts may be passed. 



On motion of Mr. Randall the following resolutions were adopt- 
ed. 

Resolved, That a committee be appouited to repair to Washington, to present 
the Memorial to the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States. 

Resolved, That the committee be authorised, to present to each Senator and 
Member of the House of Representatives of the U. S. a copy of the proceedings 
of this Convention. The following committee was accordingly appointed. 

Committee to cat ry the Memorial to Congress : 

John Sergeant, James Wilson, 

John Reed, John Britton, 

Josiah Randal!, John G. Miles, 

John P. Wetherill, Joseph Paxton, 

David VVoelpper, Robert C. Half, 

William Darlington, Henry Drinker, 

William Eyre, James M. Russell, 

William Wright, Jamea Taylor, 

Thomas M. Jolly, John S. Riddle, 

Samuel Carey, Charles W. Churchman, 

George Weber, George Darsie, 

Christopher Looser, Robert Cunningham, 

John Beitenman, Thomas Williams, 

David Kranse, JohnB. Wallace, 

Frederick Eichelbcrger, David M'Murtrie, Jr. 

On motion of Nathan Sargeant, the following resolution was u- 
nanimously adopted: 

Resolved, That the Hon. John Sergeant be respectfully requested to fur- 
nish, for publication, a copy of the remarks made Ijy him on Tuesday last, on 
presenting a resolution condemnatory of the conduct of the President of the 
United States. 

On motion of Mr. M'Connell: 

Resolved, That this Convention be styled a Convention of Delegates from 
the Citizens of Pennsylvania opposed to Executive usurpation and abuse. 

On motion of Mr. Randall: 

Resolved, That the proceedings of this Convention be signed by the President, 
Vice Prei^idents and Secretaries, and the several meinbevo of the Convention; and 



22 

be published in all the newspapers of Pennsylvania opposed to Executive usur- 
pation and misrule. 

On molion of Mr. Randall, 

Resolved, That the thanks of this Convention be presented to the Hon. Jo- 
seph Lawrexce, President, and his associates, Vice Presidents of this Con- 
vention, for the dignity and impartiality with which they have presided over 
this body. 

Resolved, That the thanks of the Convention be also presented to the Secre- 
taries, for the manner in which they hive performed the duties of their office. 

The Convention then adjourned sine die. 

JOSEPH LAWRENCE, President. 

Vic^ Pesidents. 

Ner Middleswarth, 
Hexry Frick, 
John Vincent, 
James M' Sherry, 
George Harrison, 
Frederick Eichelberger, 
Neville B. Craig, 
Samuel M'Keehan, 
J. M. RrssELL, 
Samuel Grosh, 
Peter Addams, 
David Woelpper, 

Secretaries. 

John Williamson, 
Datiid Krause, 
Thomas M. Jolly, 
William Jessup, 
Edward Olmsted, 
Samuel C. Tait. 



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